Grand Forks Issued Large ‘Jurisdictional COA’

By Danielle Lucey

The Grand Forks Sheriff’s Department and the University of North Dakota have been granted a large-scale “jurisdictional” permission to fly UAS by the Federal Aviation Administration.



The certificate of authorization, awarded 28 Nov., permits the operation of a Draganflyer X6 at and below 400 feet in 16 counties in northeastern North Dakota. The total area encompasses 12,500 square miles in Class D, E and G airspace. When the department wishes to fly, it must issue a notice to airmen and to air traffic control one hour prior to use. 



These airspace limitations are similar to the COA secured by the Mesa County Sheriff’s Department in Colorado, which also uses the Draganflyer platform.



The department anticipates that it will be able to start using the UAS to respond to incidents starting in 2013. 



The Grand Forks Sheriff’s Department has been participating in the University of North Dakota’s new UAS Research Compliance Committee, which aims at studying privacy and social concerns of flying unmanned aircraft.